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TotalBank’s President and Chief Marketing Officer Luis de la Aguilera is optimistic.

Brian Bandell

The flurry of activity in the banking industry should continue in 2011, with consolidation being the name of the game.

After leading the nation with 28 bank failures in 2010, Florida is not out of the woods by any means. It had 33 banks below “well capitalized” status on Sept. 30, including eight in South Florida that have to raise capital. It is likely that some will not make it.

Bank failures could actually be a good thing for the lending market. Struggling banks must be tight on giving out loans. The market is seeing more banks that survived the downturn, in addition to banks that rose from the ashes of their fallen competition, open up the purse strings.

Miami-based banking analyst and economist Kenneth H. Thomas said South Florida is becoming more of a “banking colony” than ever. He coined that term to describe regions where most of the market share is controlled by out-of-state banks. The location of a bank’s headquarters makes a difference because banks often take care of their own communities first, such as with charity, community involvement and sponsorships, Thomas said. Many business owners like to speak with top bank executives about their relationships, something that often isn’t possible with national and regional banks.

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